Rip Torn

Just back from the doctor (I may need to steal from Grey's Anatomy and start calling him McDreamy). He poked, he prodded, he pushed and pulled against my knee. He compared it to my other knee. And then he pronounced with authoritative certainy, "you have a slight tear in your meniscus." And being a good doctor, he pulled out a book and showed me pictures.

From knee1.com: "A meniscus is one of two half-moon shaped discs of specialized cartilage lying between the femur and tibia with more secure attachment to the tibia. The two menisci (lateral, or outside, and medial, or inside), serve several functions. These functions include: adding in joint lubrication, articular cartilage nutrition, stability and distribution of forces between the femur and tibia. The meniscus may be injured when the knee is bent or twisted while bearing weight. Meniscal injury or degeneration can also be a result of overuse over time. For example, repetitive squatting or kneeling can cause meniscal wear and make it more likely to tear."

He said the good news is that this is a pretty good self-healing injury -- if I allow it to heal. No cutting to the chase for me: "Can I still work out?"

He raised an eyebrow and asked me to describe my regular workout, if I was 100%. Then he asked me to tell him what I've been doing the past week. And then we compromised. Instead of an hour on the elliptical, I can only do 30 minutes. No weights, no squats, no bike, no treadmill. And "if it hurts, stop. It's common sense, but for some reason I feel like I need to tell you that."

Everyone loves a smart ass.

So I need to take it easy. I need to let my body heal. And if it's not better in a couple weeks, then I should take a break. Completely. Stop. If it doesn't heal on its own, then the next step would be physical therapy.

So there is good news and bad news. Obviously the bad news is that I'm injured. But rather than going on the DL, my status will be day-to-day. The good news, I can still work out. I can continue what I started without losing momentum.

For today, the eye of the tiger is still there.